“We’ll score goals against Jeju”.
Jeonbuk Hyundai and Daejeon Hana Citizen played to a 1-1 draw in the 28th round of the Hana OneQ K League 1 2023 at Jeonju World Cup Stadium on Friday.
Jeonbuk earned a point through Song Min-kyu’s equalizer. The draw extended Jeonbuk’s unbeaten streak at home to 11 matches.
After conceding the first goal to Daejeon, Jeonbuk scored in the 38th minute when Song Min-gyu didn’t miss a pass from Baek Seung-ho. Baek Seung-ho’s accurate forward pass reached Song Min-gyu, who boldly stepped into the left side of the penalty area and shot to split the goal.
“I was lucky,” Song humbly responded to the circumstances of his goal.
“As a striker, it’s something you have to constantly think about and reflect on. If I score a goal, we win, but since I didn’t, I think the team’s situation is not good. I have to take responsibility as a striker and try harder,” he reflected.
Song’s sensational goal against Daejeon was his sixth goal of the season.
“I think it’s okay for the offense to take the burden in the current situation. It will be difficult to get the three points if we delay our victory. I think we need to take more responsibility,” he said, emphasizing the need for the offense to work harder.
Song Min-kyu also said, “We need to talk to each other more while playing. I can see some mismatches. We need to communicate with our teammates.”
In addition to Jeonbuk, Song will be joining the Hangzhou Asian Games squad after the team’s 29th round match against Jeju.
“I apologize to the fans for not winning the last three games. I’m joining the national team after Jeju, and I really want to win. We need to score a lot of goals and win to be able to join the national team comfortably. The gold medal is important, but we need to focus more on our game and get the win.”
In addition to Song Min-kyu, Jeonbuk has two wild cards in goalkeeper Kim Jung-hoon. Baek Seung-ho and Park Jin-seop, who play in the midfield. In the match, Song Min-gyu converted a sensational pass from Baek Seung-ho into a goal.
“I often make eye contact with (Park) Jin-seob and (Baek) Seung-ho in practice, and I also received a pass and scored a goal right away,” Song Min-kyu said. “I scored two goals with Jin-seob and one with Seung-ho, so I’m not sure if I should talk more with Jin-seob,” he replied with a smile.
As for Kim Jung-hoon, who completed his military service with Gimcheon Commerce, he said, “I’m always talking to Jin Seob-yi and Seung-ho-hyung, saying, ‘Let’s do well.’ Especially these days, I think I’m talking to them more personally. (Kim) Jung-hoon has no pressure. He’s the only one whose military service has been resolved. I’ll always be good to him from now on.”
Meanwhile, Song Min-kyu said of the Jeju game, “We’re going to score a lot of goals and we’re going to score a lot of goals at the Asian Games,” adding, “The players don’t care about the negative views of the national team. We just need to do our job well. That’s what the coach always emphasizes. Doing our best is our goal and what we need to do.”